Monthly Archives: December 2010

Better – Not Good Enough

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We played with heart and intensity last night short-handed.

We don’t get any breaks and we aren’t making our own luck. With a thousand cameras around the rink and net, no one could see if the puck went in or not. Amazing but true.

We take an ill advised penalty and have to kill off a 5 minute power play. We didn’t.

Nets go off the mooring at the wrong time. There is a stoppage of play and for what reasons?

But we did play hard with intensity and with energy.

We are looking like a team that is struggling with its confidence and with no pace on the power play. Thank goodness for the play of Matt Hendricks last night.

We play again tonight in NYC against the New York Rangers. Then a couple of days to practice which we certainly do need.

I hope we are getting this all out of our system now.

Wizards Game Last Night

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I thought we played well. We showed why we have promise but we showed why we have so much work left to do.

We also showed why we really are missing that one “go to” guy, a big man that can take over a game; go to the basket; draw fouls; and hit foul shots.

The Knicks are much improved and they have a player that is red hot. He is in his prime and is a difference maker.

We need to play closer to the rim and take more foul shots. We need to take less fade away jump shots. Even I can see that! Ball movement is good, too. We stand around too much at key times. We make too may turnovers without a shot. We will improve but the delta between success and failure possession by possession is so small. Covet the ball each and every opportunity down court. We will learn.

When the going got tough at the end of the game, one player dominated the pace and action. We will develop that instinct and hopefully will learn how to close out games that are ours to win.

We had a big crowd last night. The energy was high in the building.

However, we certainly did have a lot of Knicks fans in attendance last night and it makes me sad. We have a lot of work to do to sell out our building filled with Wizards fans. We are focused on that and this atmospheric is also a part of our rebuild plan. Sell out games – with our fans.

We essentially have half the building empty that we have to sell every single night via groups; walk ups; and online sales. Last night – because the Kicks are playing so well – the local Knicks fan base was activated and because tickets are available, the house was truly of mixed loyalties. This is a key reason why we are so focused on selling season tickets to our fan base.

Again, I have experienced this before and I believe that the better we play, the more competitive we become and the better services that we offer. We will be able to sell out games with our own fans in the house.

Thank you for attending the game last night Wizards fans. It is most appreciated.

It doesn’t get easier. We play the Lakers and then we play the Heat.

Onward.

Teachable moments offered here. Gaining experiences as a team.

Alumni Day and Night

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Thank you Bullets/Wizards alumni.

What a full day.

Meetings amongst the staff.

Meeting with our players and front office.

Autograph sessions with our fans.

Watching the game from the owners’ box.

A half court celebration.

Dining in the owners’ club.

Hanging out at the Green Turtle afterwards.Finally getting some sleep at the Hilton Garden Inn hotel near the arena.

A full day and a full night. A great welcome back set of moments.

Here’s to seeing you all at future games and to building the alumni group to be the most active in the NBA.

Spike

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I will next sit with him courtside in MSG when the Wizards play the Knicks. He owns two season tickets there and he has invited me to join him.

That was our deal made back in 2007 when I was finishing my film, Nanking. Spike gave me great feedback in editing and we talked a lot about basketball.We agreed to host a home on home series with each other.

Spike was very generous with his time. He talked to many of our fans; signed autographs; and didn’t trash talk at all. He celebrated the Knicks. He was a fantastic guest. I hope we return the favor at MSG and that I can celebrate a victory in NYC.